Bulwell knife murder man jailed for life

Kevin Rogers

A man who denied stabbing to death a young dad in a playground has today been jailed for life.

Joshua Davey, 21, of Deptford Crescent, Bulwell, stabbed Danny Parekh 16 times at a play area off Oakleigh Street, in Old Basford, Nottingham, on Sunday 8th July 2012.

Liam Gleeson, 17, also of Deptford Crescent, who can be named for the first time following a court ruling, was found guilty of assisting an offender and committing GBH. He will be sentenced on 12th June 2014, following reports. Gleeson, Davey’s cousin, was cleared of murder and manslaughter.

The attack took place after a confrontation in which a girl was assaulted.

Mr Parekh was called to the playground after the assault and Gleeson went to fetch Davey from a nearby address.

Detective Inspector Leigh Sanders said: “This was a playground fight that spiralled out of control when Davey took a knife to the scene with the intention of stabbing the victim.

“It was a relentless and cowardly attack, for which he then tried to evade justice by fleeing to Spain.

“This tragedy highlights the horrific results that can come from carrying a knife. A young man has lost his life, a toddler lost his father, and another will spend the majority of his life behind bars.”

After the attack Davey fled to Spain using his cousin Julian Davey’s passport. Julian Davey admitted assisting an offender by travelling with his cousin to the airport after knowing he had committed a serious assault. He was jailed for 32 months.

Joshua Davey, who will serve a minimum of 21 years in jail, had claimed that he was in the area at the time of the assault but did not stab Mr Parekh, 21. He alleged that he fled to Spain in fear of his life after being named locally as the attacker. He was detained by Spanish authorities in Malaga 12 days later and extradited to the UK.

Mr Parekh’s mother Lesa Buckingham has been left devastated by the loss of her son.

She said: “I can’t believe Danny has been taken away from me. I sometimes wake up thinking it can’t possibly have happened, I expect him to come home.

“It’s been nearly two years and I am trying to move on and have a fresh start but I will never get over this. I can’t believe he’s gone.”